Honeck Conducts Mahler & Bruckner 9

After a lifetime of writing towering, panoramic symphonies, Anton Bruckner had one more cosmic masterpiece in store. The Ninth Symphony, dedicated “to God,” creates a world of serenity, anguish and soaring majesty. Manfred Honeck, whose 2020 recording of the Ninth received three Grammy nominations, is an ideal guide to the composer’s final score. Mahler, Bruckner’s contemporary, explores nature and German folk legend in The Youth’s Magic Horn, a wry, bittersweet song cycle that features mezzo-soprano Marianne Crebassa. “Hers is a sound that’s easy to get lost in, its lusciousness impossible to resist” (Chicago Tribune).